Unborn Existences - Incline to Decline
by TempoTechStudios
Summary: Fyronum Techno Flimberg has experienced many strange things throughout his life; in fact, he makes it his job to explain these peculiar phenomenons. When he gets transported to a different timeline and universe, however, will he be able to solve the anomalies plaguing him and everyone there? Will he be able to return home?
1. Chapter 1: Loosened Ends

Surprise! I was listening to music and decided to create this. Unexpected, to say the least, but here it is.

 **Chapter 1**

 _ **"Loosened Ends"**_

* * *

( **The Warpath Home - Final Fantasy XIII** )

(Point of View: ?)

I watched as countless people got shot down. Their pain and agony was shown through screams and helpless cries. They couldn't defend themselves. They were all confused, afraid, and some very angry. I wouldn't blame them. All they could do was stand there and die. This was supposed to be "righteous judgement". _As if._ Just ambush everyone and mow them down. Like this was right in any way. Omnis was going to pay. Though I may not have even shed a tear while witnessing of the loss of these innocent lives, his death would be no different; the only problem was that killing him would upset the balance in the "multiverse". Yes. Existence _and_ the Void. Omnis was the embodiment of the Void, making him a Deity of some sort. He slaughtered millions of souls almost every day. How was I going to defeat him? Well... you'll have to find out, won't you?

* * *

( **Defiers of Fate - Final Fantasy XIII** )

* * *

(Point of View: Narrator)

"Enough of this!" yelled a voice from above. The unarmored soldiers turned in surprise, already shooting rapidly. A shield came hurtling toward them, forcing them all to move aside. They looked around, but their numbers were already decreasing. A sword came hurtling toward them, followed by an orb. Most of the gunners dodged the blade, but when the orb made impact, a huge electromagnetic field expanded, launching them in the air. Suddenly, a blurry figure descended, landing in the middle of the field. The moment it did, the soldiers inside were flung around like rag-dolls. As the field disintegrated, it was evident that they weren't getting up ever again. One of the soldiers suddenly began shooting at his own allies, which triggered more shooting. As the soldiers began killing each other, a boy walked away from the scene. He was fairly tall, with strangely spiked black hair and two completely different colored eyes. He wore a black jacket with unique designs, and had on a normal pair of grey jeans. He stopped when the shooting ended. He took a knife and threw it at one of the remaining soldiers. The others began shooting at him, and the one victim couldn't dodge the knife. The boy made no effort to move, and got shot instead. However, he dissolved into a few wisps of black smoke. The soldiers looked around, confused, until the boy came up from behind with his knife in hand, killing each with one individual slice to the back. They tried to hit him, but to no prevail. His agility was impressive for his age, and he almost seemed to know exactly when each was shooting at him. He was immediately halted, however, by a staff to the face. He fell straight to the ground, sliding a bit as one soldier advanced on him, holding the gun up to his face. The others, slowly recovering, limped to the boy as well.  
"You're dead, bub!" the man yelled from behind his leather helmet. The boy stared at him with surprise until he studied the weapon and grinned.  
"Nice gun." He slid his feet to the left, tripping the soldier as the boy himself got up. The soldier's rifle dropped out of his hand as he fell, the weapon being caught by the boy. He tried to do the same to the boy, but the boy jumped over his legs, landing straight on them. A crack could be heard as the soldier yelled in pain. The boy turned off the safety and shot the guy with two bullets, shutting him up. He chuckled.  
"You guys should really learn how to use guns correctly, you know?" he said, then aiming it at the shocked soldiers. The boy went rapid fire with his assault rifle, laying down every last enemy. He wiped a bead of sweat off of his forehead as the surrounding citizens stared in awe. The boy then spoke loud enough for everyone to hear.

* * *

( **Snow's Theme - Final Fantasy XIII** )

* * *

"Everyone! They'll be sending in reinforcements soon enough. If you hide or try to run away, they'll find you and _kill_ you. Don't let that happen. Take all of their weapons and shoot them down on sight. They killed all of your loved ones, so you should return the favor before they kill more of you." Someone from the large audience spoke up. "But most of us don't know how to use weapons! We've never _had_ to use them before!" In the distance, a large blimp with a blurry design on it loomed over part of the quiet town. The boy cringed at the sight, but continued on.  
"I know you people never wanted this... but you have to do your best now. It's now or never. Simply..." He pointed his rifle at the blimp, then taking out the ammo and pulling one small orb from his pocket. It glowed a bright scarlet until he encased it in a small bullet. He placed that one bullet in the gun. "Pull the trigger." He did just that, the bullet flying out faster than the eye could see. Nothing happened for two seconds. Suddenly, the blimp exploded in midair, no pieces flying anywhere. The entire thing engulfed itself in flame, evaporating before it ever touched the ground. Everything inside was never to be seen again. The crowd gasped in surprise, then discussing with each other. They all found guns and picked them up, including women and the older children. The boy smiled. "You can all do this. These creatures are otherworldly, with no hearts. Even if you do kill them, though... don't be brutal. Pray for them, or whatnot. This isn't their fault. They shouldn't be here, yet they were still sent. Keep that in mind. He placed his gun on the ground, then pressing a button on his watch. He was then enveloped in a teal flame. "Farewell for now. And good luck." He disappeared in a flash of light, his empty gun lying there for all to see. With motivation, they all eyed the fleet of blimps heading their way.  
"Let's go!"  
"For Derelyn!"  
"Charge!"

* * *

( **Sazh's Theme** **\- Final Fantasy XIII** )

* * *

(Point of View: Mysterious Boy)

I materialized back at my base in the X-Facility. That place was what I called home. From there, I could watch over any place in the world with the power of our Omni Sphere, located in the center of the building. It not only served as an interactive map, but it was also a living circuit for all of the energy in the tower. It was useful indeed, which is why we still needed to study it. You see, I was part of a group of scientists and inventors called "D.U.S.T. Discovering unidentified substances for testing." I know, it's not the best name, but it's pretty straightforward and to the point. This is what we did. We found things out. We identified what was unknown to the world, then sharing our knowledge with everyone. We didn't work for money. We wanted _results._ We were all learning everything we could. Maybe one day, our Chief said, we'd be able to create an entire city in less than a year with help from newly discovered materials alone. Until then, we'd need to work very hard to find said materials. Now, I was an exception. I was allowed to multitask, since I was the only one there who knew about Omnis and his whereabouts. Everyone knew that he was an extreme threat, but not only to that town though; sooner or later, he would catch up with us and we'd have loads of trouble on our hands. I needed to delay his progress and decrease his numbers as much as I could so I could save as many beings as possible. Of course, that was a difficult job, but due to all the intense training I'd gotten, I could almost be called superhuman. I could throw a blade at someone and warp to my weapon without breaking a sweat. If that's not impressive, I don't know what is. But I used my skills for the greater good. Well, I tried to, at least. Now, I sometimes contemplate on whether I did the right thing or not. Nonetheless, everyone in the facility respected me. Especially the Chief. Speaking of which, let's get back to the story.

As I began to walk down the large spiral staircase to the control room, I was encountered by a tall girl with blonde hair and freckles. She wore, like everyone else, a lab coat and glasses, but her coat was lined with badges, which I thought was _very_ unsafe, though she insisted on wearing them.  
"Heyo, Fyro!" she said, smiling. One would be surprised to hear such words coming from such a serious looking person, but I had learned to get used to it.  
"Good evening, Brittaney." I replied.  
"So, did you hear?" she asked me excitedly. I cocked my head to the side.  
"What're you talking about?" She gave me a light punch on the shoulder.  
"Oh, c'mon! Didn't anyone tell you about the newest Paradox?" she asked. I would've facepalmed harder, but it would hurt.  
"Ma'am, I _just_ got here..."  
"Stop calling me Ma'am! We're buddies!" she said.  
"But-"  
"So anyway, here's the scoop. When Joshua was out searching, he came across this small shard. The moment he brought it in, he started getting pulled to the Omni Sphere... but when he got closer, he felt like he was being pulled to the ground, like gravity was suddenly trying to push him through the floor. We were hoping you-" I cut her off, holding three small orbs in between the fingers of my one hand. Each orb pulsated with electricity, but such didn't bother me.  
"Could use my impact bombs and gravity shells to get closer to it?" I finished. She nodded, evidently annoyed that I knew exactly what she was going to say.  
"Yep." I nodded, heading back up.  
"I'll be back." I called.  
"Be careful!"  
"'Careful' is my middle name!"  
"Actually, it's 'Techno'..."

* * *

( **Academy's Theme - Final Fantasy XIII-2** )

* * *

Now, let's discuss Paradoxes. "Paradoxes", with a capital "P". These are things that are so extraordinary that we figure they shouldn't even exist. Things that have no place here, and have no account of ever being created. For example, the Paradox that inspired D.U.S.T to be developed: Someone in our world disappeared, entering the Void. He returned less than a second later through the same wormhole, yet his appearance had changed completely. We were trying to figure out who this person was and how they did this. We don't know much about the Void yet, so that's been our main objective. Days after we started the group, we found the Omni Sphere, which had a strange blue glow to it. Whenever someone got too close to it, they disappeared for a varying amount of time, then appearing somewhere else in the town, without memories of anything. It was strange indeed, but we knew we had found the answer. When young Joshua Lamont approached the sphere with the shard in hand, he didn't disappear, but was greatly affected by gravity. Once I retrieved the stone from him, I was told to go above the sphere, then slowly descending with the object in hand. Once I did, I would be able to find the secret of the orb. As I walked up the steps, watched closely by everyone, I wondered what I would discover. Once I walked up three flights of steps and was on the second highest platform, I headed for the lookout. The stone began to vibrate as I walked to the edge. There was a rail to prevent anyone from falling, but I stepped over it, my feet landing on the very narrow edge of the platform. I crushed one of the small orbs in my hand as an orb of electromagnetic energy surrounded me. My gravity shells were already attached to my shoes, so I could land without a problem. Everyone already had out their notebooks, ready to jot down what they saw. I took a deep breath and jumped.

* * *

( **Paradox - Final Fantasy XIII-2** )

* * *

I fell slowly, the suspense causing everyone to glue their eyes to me. I looked down at the orb, hoping that I didn't lose my memories. I like helping everyone out, and I didn't want to let them down now. _Four feet... three and a half..._ the crystal in my hand suddenly began to make my hand vibrate too. As I descended, I was beginning to have trouble keeping it in my grasp. _Three... two..._ I was almost there. Brittaney stared, excited yet frightened. Everyone else did the same, their eyes barely visible through their goggles. I didn't even look down at the sphere as I landed. I closed my eyes, bracing myself for the worst. After a few seconds, I opened them, but was in the same spot. The only thing was, the shard was shaking violently, the edges cutting my hands. "Darn this thing..." I muttered, bringing the thing closer to the sphere. Everyone watched in suspense as I lowered the gem. That's when it melted, the liquid crystal flowing through my hands and onto the sphere. Everyone gasped as light flickered on the sphere's sides. I couldn't see from where I was, but I imagined it was a very interesting sight. That's when I heard Brittaney yell to me.  
"Fyronum, get off of the sphere!" I stood up, but as soon as I did, I heard the shattering of glass and lost my footing. "NO!" I tried to turn my head to see everyone, but as soon as I did, I saw giant bronze cylinders moving up and/or down. I looked around, still unable to stand, and saw that I was actually surrounded by large moving gears.  
"What the-" I started, before realizing I was being pulled toward a set of three gears. They looked almost like they were three separate paths leading to something. Were one of them a gateway back home? I worked out some math in my head to see which would most likely lead back. I then realized that I had came from a portal that was still visible. It lied in the gap between two of the gears. If I went through there, I might've been able to get back to the facility. That was exactly what I was going to do. I did my best to flip over in midair, and began making swimming motions, trying to get to the portal. That's when I heard loud clanging in the distance. In a matter of seconds, I saw a slightly smaller gear rolling through these ones; it was heading straight for me. I tried to move out the way, but I was far too slow. The gear rammed into me, knocking me out as it slammed into two of the three other gears. I silently drifted toward the remaining exit as the portal closed.

* * *

( **Music: Off** )

* * *

And so ends the first chapter of my newest story. I hope you guys liked it! I think such an action packed intro is what I've been needing for all this time. I mean, I already made a story(which I eliminated) with this character, so I guess I'm just making a _better_ story now. But anyway, I hope you all enjoyed this. There'll be more coming soon!

* * *

( **FINAL FANTASY** **XIII-2 ~** **Future~ - Fin** **al Fantasy XIII-2** )

* * *

Serah and Noel were floating through the Historia Crux, searching for Graviton Cores to help them obtain the artifact for the Gate in Academia.  
"Hey, Noel?" asked Serah. Her friend looked back at her.  
"What's up?" he responded.  
"What do you think we'll find behind that Gate? You know, once it's finished?"  
"I don't know, to tell you the truth. But I can assure you, it'll get us closer to Lightning." Serah smiled at this. Just then, Mog's crystal began to glow. Even though his mouth(if he even had one) didn't move, he still spoke.  
"I think something's nearby, kupo!" Serah nodded, then seeing what it was. It seemed to have the shape of a human being.  
"Can you reveal it?"  
"Leave it to me, kupo!" he said, twirling his wand as a field of energy expanded outwards.  
"Who's this?" asked Serah.  
"I don't know, but he's unconscious. We need to bring him with us," replied Noel. Serah nodded.

* * *

( **Music: Off** )


	2. Chapter 2: Time Travel

_I have returned upon the shores of fate!_ But in all seriousness, it's good to be back. It _has_ been a very long time since I last posted, and I apologize for that. What with school work and everything in the way, I haven't found time to update any of my stories, despite the many ideas I've come up with. Now, however, it's the end of the school year and I'll have more than enough time to create some awesome chapters, so stay tuned and enjoy!

 **Chapter 2**

" _ **Time Travel"**_

* * *

 **Unborn Existences: Incline to Decline. The story so far…**

( **Track of Battles - Final Fantasy XIII-2** )

" _You can all do this… farewell for now. And good luck."  
"Didn't anyone tell you about the newest paradox? We were hoping you-"  
"Could use my impact bombs and gravity shells to get closer to it?"  
Everyone gasped as light flickered on the sphere's sides… I stood up, but as soon as I did, I heard the shattering of glass and lost my footing.  
The gear rammed into me…_

" _I think someone's nearby, kupo!"  
"Who's this?"  
"I don't know, but he's unconscious. We need to bring him with us."_

* * *

( **The City of Academia – Final Fantasy XIII-2** )

* * *

(Point of View: Fyronum)

The blaring lights seemed to hit my eyes before they even opened, but I somehow managed to see. What I saw, however, was _definitely_ not the facility. In fact, I had no idea _where_ I was. I was propped up against a wall in some sort of… shopping center? I didn't really know. All I knew was that there were a whole lot of people looking at me like I had two heads. As I got up, I felt a sharp pain in my forehead, immediately falling back to the ground. It was then that I remembered the gear that nearly tore my head _off_ ; nonetheless, I got back up anyway and looked around. There was daylight, and everything in the large room seemed to have a modern design. I gazed upon numerous holographic screens and thought to myself: _how long have I been asleep?!_ My thoughts were followed by the giant metal door sliding open as two people walked out from it.

As if they knewme, they ran over to me with relieved expressions on their faces. So, appearances… well… one of them had rose colored hair and was wearing what looked somewhat like a tunic with way too many red straps on it. She walked alongside a fairly young-looking man with a symmetrically designed top and a pair of robe-like pants, adorned with feathers and other garments. There was an armguard on his left arm and multiple bands around his other. The both of them looked at me like I was a long-lost friend or something, and I wondered if I actually knew them.

"Hey, you're awake!" The guy said to me. I curtly responded, not really thinking clearly.  
"Who are you?" Surprised, the girl giggled.  
"And you're obviously feeling better," she held out her hand. "I'm Serah. Nice to meet you." I hesitantly shook it, eyeing her suspiciously.  
"Er… likewise." The man did the same.  
"Noel. Noel Kreiss." I shook his hand. Without even introducing myself, I immediately began to question them.  
"Okay, where am I? The last thing I remember is seeing is-" but I never finished my sentence. One rule of D.U.S.T was to worry normal citizens as little as possible. That meant I couldn't really explain what happened. But I didn't have to. Noel seemed to know everything already.  
"The Historia Crux, right? We saw you floating there a while ago. You must have come from a different time." As I tried to gather this information, I just stared at him.  
"Wait, _what?_ Another time? All I remember is getting body slammed by a giant gear." Serah nodded.  
"Yep. Definitely the Historia Crux."  
" _What_ is the Historia Crux?!"  
"We'll show you," she responded. I rolled my eyes and followed them as they walked outside.

Suddenly, I felt the world spin around me. Noel and Serah were still next to me, but everything else was completely black. I saw gold, translucent writings float in the air as the loud sound of a ticking clock rang in my ears. In less than a few seconds, I had lost my footing and was floating aimlessly in the same space as before; however, Noel and Serah had no trouble maneuvering in the air.

* * *

( **Historia Crux – Final Fantasy XIII-2** )

* * *

"Welcome to the Historia Crux! I'm sure you've already seen it, but hopefully you won't get pummeled like last time," called Noel. I, unamused, looked all over the place, wondering why everything was so calm now, and why, better yet, Serah and Noel could move so easily.  
"The hell is all this?!" I yelled over the churning gears. Serah nodded to me.  
"This is a gateway between multiple areas in time."  
"So this is what you meant by 'coming from a different time?'" Noel nodded.  
"Pretty much. And now, we can visit anywhere we've got the artefact for," he replied. Interested, I asked, "Artefact?" Serah cut back in. "They're items that unlock different time gates. They allow us to get to more places." I shrugged, gaining some sort of balance.  
"Whatever you say. So, where and when to?"  
"Well, we've gotta get our hands on some Graviton Cores to complete a gate back in Academia, the city we were just in," responded Noel. I nodded thoughtfully.  
"Where would we find them?"  
"In different timelines, of course!"  
"Oh, why do I even bother-"  
"Hey, don't sweat it. Just follow us. With all this travel, we'll eventually be able to find where you came from, right?" I hadn't even thought about that. The guys back at the facility must have been worried sick. And so, I responded with a half-hearted "Yeah." Noel gave me a reassuring smile as the Historia Crux began to spin around us as well. The scenery seemed to bend as if we were travelling at light speed, though I felt the same. Blinding light flooded through the air, eventually surrounding us in white.

* * *

( **Eclipse – Final Fantasy XIII-2** )

* * *

I felt myself slowly gliding from the gate, the very air around me distorting for my own benefit. The entire world seemed to grow around me as gravity began to catch up. Before I could fall flat on my face, my foot connected with the ground to ensure a safer landing for myself. Noel and Serah did the same as I got up. Looking around, I saw that we were in some ruined area, the orange sky flashing with lightning. This did not appear normal to me in any way, shape, or form. "What's going on with the clouds? Where are we?" Serah held her head in thought.  
"Is this Yaschas Massif? Where's the Academy?" Her question was answered when a man in a yellow and white uniform jogged up the stairs to meet us.  
"Oh, thank goodness- time travelers, right?" Noel eyed him suspiciously for a second, then putting his hand on his hip in approval.  
"Yeah. You guys having trouble with something?"  
"Yes, actually… you see, these strange orbs have been showing up all over the place, and we can't seem to do anything about it. All we hear is blood-curdling screeches, and…" Serah then interrupted.  
"Where's Hope? He should be-"  
"The director's gone to the future. Now that he did, we've been plagued with this paradox. Nobody's come to help us either. That's why we've been waiting for you."  
"Well… we'll do what we can."  
"Thank you. Thank you so much."  
"Helping out's what we do!"

I smiled at this as the man thanked her one more time and hurried back down the steps. I then spoke.  
"I'd like to help too," I started, taking out a shining knife, "I may not have much, but I've got enough knowledge on my weaponry to make the most of what I've got." Noel rubbed his chin.  
"Seems like you know what you're doing. But we'll see how you do in a real fight. Now, let's go," he said, jumping off the platform. I did the same, followed by Serah. I felt a chill going down my spine as I descended, landing perfectly on the ground. In front of us hovered a crimson sphere, black designs scattered all over it. Noel hovered his hand over it, and it began to emit loud shrieks, forcing me to cover my ears. The sound obviously surprised Serah a bit as she jumped just a bit from it, but Noel only flinched. In my chest, a nagging pain began to grow. I glared at the orb, slowly uncovering my ears. I still had no idea what I was hearing.

* * *

( **Stigmata of an Oath** **– Final Fantasy XIII-2** )

* * *

Suddenly, as I began to make out some words, they were overshadowed by the loud sounds of brass bells. Noel and Serah seemed to slow down until they came to a complete halt. I didn't even see them breathing. "Hey, guys? Noel? Serah!" There was no response at all, but their faces darkened. The loud clock ticking could be heard, but the world didn't spin at all. Instead, the scenery began to warp. Darkness flowed out of the red orb and the air distorted, making vision almost impossible. It was as if I was staring down a melting painting, except this was – at least, I assumed – reality. I began to have trouble breathing as the very oxygen in the air began to thin and get sucked from the atmosphere. The sky flashed once more, but stayed white. Absolutely everything stopped, streaks of black flying back and forth. They were more opaque writings, but the same type that brought me to the Historia Crux. Was that my destination? I, expecting to lose my footing any moment, instead looked around. Noel and Serah were gone. The distortion of the air began to calm as my vision eased. The ground twisted and cracked beneath my feet, the mountains seemingly rising. Eventually, the sky began to gain color as if being drawn across. Blackness enveloped the balcony, the time gate, everything. The bells rang at an alarming volume, forcing me to cover my ears yet again. I restrained from yelling in pain as the nagging pain reached its climax. I didn't notice the golden rune that had appeared on the ground around me. As its glow strengthened, the blackness ceased. In less than a few seconds, everything had calmed down and the rune disappeared. Everything was silent.

* * *

( **Music: Off** )

* * *

I bolted awake as the light blinded me. As I attempted to stand up, I nearly lost my balance and fell again. The sound of chirping birds filled the air, and I was welcomed by the sun. I thought I had died or such until I felt the solid ground beneath me. I was… _still_ in Yaschas Massif, but everything was gone. No people, no orbs, not even the orange sky. It was just a beautiful day. _Too_ beautiful. I had gotten so used to the scenery that I didn't even hear what was behind me.

* * *

( **Blinded by Light – Final Fantasy XIII** )

* * *

After hearing a low, guttural cry, I turned around and was smacked in the face by a… thing? I couldn't see much but the burly, disconnected body parts before I went flying off the ledge and onto the cold, hard ground. "Ngh… what the…" Suddenly, I heard multiple gunshots as a silver-haired boy came running to me, closing his eyes and gently gliding his hand over me. I felt a warmth flow through my body as my wounds healed themselves. I sat up, feeling my head for any bruises. They were all gone. And I knew who to thank for it. I turned to the boy, giving him a grateful smile. "Thank you," he nodded to me as I got up, turning around.  
"Don't mention it," he replied. I, disregarding the fact that he was young, assumed he knew what he was doing and threw my knife upward so it stabbed into the platform above. As I heard the flapping of wings, I turned once more. A flying monster covered in some sort of fleshy material came flying toward me. The boy jumped back, throwing a boomerang its way, but missed. As it nearly collided with me, I closed my eyes, my entire body instantly appearing where my knife landed. As I pulled it out of the ground, I heard a loud crash below; the enemy obviously wasn't smart enough to pull up. As the monster from before came into view, I got a clear image. It was covered in flesh like the other one, but hovered over a circular piece that was covered in the same material. It had two bulky arms with crab-like hands, and its head was also disconnected. I took out a gravity shell from my pocket and threw it upward. Throwing my knife upward, I jumped and closed my eyes, appearing with my knife in hand, far up into the sky. As gravity slowed around me, I began to descend from it, eventually leaving the safe zone. I took an impact bomb and threw it downward, holding my blade out in front of me as I began to accelerate. In a matter of seconds, I cut right through the enemy's head but had no trouble landing, as the bomb reduced my landing impact to nothing, allowing for a clean slice. It evidently did a lot of damage, but not enough to destroy it. My attack was followed by another slice from someone else.

As she slid across my anti-gravity field, she stopped right next to me. She was a woman with rose colored hair, the same as Serah's. That's exactly who I thought she was, too.  
"Serah!" I exclaimed, staring in awe. She herself seemed surprised, but had a much deeper voice.  
"Who- what the- Gah!" she cried, getting sent through a thin pillar. I turned back to the monster, taking an orb from my pocket.  
" _Alright!_ You're going down!" I tossed the orb in the air, sliding a pistol from my back pocket. I shot the orb while it was in midair, and crystals immediately impaled the monster. As I clenched my fist, the crystals turned red and exploded, sending the monster back a bit. I heard a loud shatter as a glass-like substance flew all over the place. "What the…" More gunshots interrupted me, and I saw that the monster started to flinch from attacks. Suddenly, the woman got back up and started swinging her arm back and forth. Lightning itself rained from the heavens, constantly striking the monster. The boy from before jumped up the platform and launched his boomerang, which was now covered in flame. I moved back to avoid it, the attack flying right into the monster. It came back to the boy, hitting the monster again. With another gunshot, the entire world seemed to amplify in sound. The monster seemed to be enveloped in a yellow aura, and was no longer moving about. Then, multiple orbs of an uncolored energy began flying toward it, barraging it with the same damaging attack. I twirled my knife in my hand and prepared to strike, but I suddenly heard a yell from above.  
"Heroes _always_ win!" As I looked up, the figure had already went plummeting toward the enemy. I was knocked back by the impact, which disregarded my weakened gravity-field. What seemed like an explosion knocked us all back, dust and debris flying everywhere. When the smoke cleared, the monster was gone. In his place was another guy, this one wearing a trench coat and a black bandanna over his head. He clenched his fists, smirking. "Gotta admit, that was pretty fun."

* * *

( **Snow's Theme – Final Fantasy XIII** )

* * *

I turned to the man, staring in disbelief. As I walked toward him, I felt the need to ask, as I had just about everyone I'd met so far: "And who're you?"  
"What, no thank you? Heh- anyway, the name's Snow. This here's Lightning, and that guy over there," he pointed to the silver-haired boy. "Is Hope." Hope decided to interfere with the conversation.  
"Do you _really_ think it's safe to go introducing all of us to someone we just met?" I rudely responded, "That _someone_ has a name. It's Fyronum." Lightning then walked up to me, giving me a look of disbelief.  
"You… you know Serah?" she asked. As if it was obvious, I said, "Um, yeah?" with a confused expression on my face. "I thought _you_ were Serah." She shook her head, closing her eyes.  
"No. That's my sister's name."  
"Your _sister?_ You two look so much like each other!" But I hadn't taken the time to register the differences. Lightning was wearing a completely different outfit. It looked like a uniform of some sort, but she also had a cape on, making her look much cooler than Serah. Well, to me, at least. She had her blade in hand, but I saw that she had a sword holder to carry it in.  
"Yeah, we do. But how do you know her?"  
"Well, I saw her not too long ago."  
" _Here?_ But that's impossible-"  
"I may be imagining it, but I definitely saw her… she didn't mention you at all though." Lightning looked extremely confused, but Hope rested his hand on her shoulder, despite being shorter.  
"You shouldn't worry about it now, Light. We'll have plenty of time to talk once we get back to base camp." Lightning sighed and nodded.  
"Of course. Fyronum, was it?"  
"Yeah," I responded.

* * *

( **Yaschas Massif – Final Fantasy XIII** )

* * *

"You're coming with us. We need to talk more, but here's not the place. There are Cie'th everywhere," she began, hopping off the platform, "and we can't have you dying on us." I followed, along with Snow and Hope. We were greeted by three other people. One had a brighter shade of Lightning and Serah's hair, and she wore an animal skin garb.  
"Ah, I heard the entire conversation! Nice to meet you, Fyronum! I'm Vanille." She held out her hand before even giving me the chance to respond. I reached my hand outward and she eagerly shook it. The black-haired woman wore an outfit similar to Noel's, except for the fact that it was less baggy.  
"Oerba Yun Fang. Charmed," she said, "but I'm not going to shake your hand. I still don't have a _clue_ who you are."  
"Fine by me." I nodded to the other guy, who had an afro and a dusty green jacket on. "I didn't catch your name." He chuckled at this, shrugging.  
"I didn't throw it." At this remark, I stood there, unable to respond.  
"I-"  
"Call me Sazh. Nice to meet ya." He flashed a smile at me, then standing akimbo. "Don't think I've ever seen someone like you around here before."  
"I'm not really from around here. I don't know how I got here." I scratched my head, thinking for a second. "Do any of you guys know someone named Noel?" Nobody responded with a yes. Snow shrugged.  
"Never heard of 'em." Before Lightning could give her input, I shook my head.  
"Don't worry about it. For now, we should probably get out of here. I mean, weren't we headed to base camp or something?" Lightning changed her expression and nodded.  
"Yes. Everyone, follow me." She jumped up the ruined structure and up to the grassy platform, the others following. I did the same, clutching my knife in case of another ambush.

* * *

( **Music: Off** )


End file.
